Stertil-Koni says the Rotary Lift EFX, top, infringes on the patent for its Ecolift, bottom.

The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland (Baltimore) alleges among other things that Rotary Lift's EFX line of scissor lifts infringe on Stertil-Koni's U.S. Patent No. 8,191,865, directed to a Device and System for Lifting a Motor Vehicle.

Stertil-Koni makes and sells scissor lifts covered by its patent under the brand name Ecolift. The complaint also alleges that Rotary Lift has misappropriated the trade dress of Stertil-Koni's Ecolift scissor lift, and that Rotary Lift infringed Stertil-Koni's copyright by copying Stertil-Koni's drawings for Rotary Lift's EFX scissor lift.

Stertil-Koni's complaint seeks damages of an unspecified amount and an injunction preventing Rotary Lift from further acts of patent infringement, trade dress infringement and copyright infringement.

Vehicle Service Group issued a statement in response, saying it "is in the process of reviewing and preparing a response to Stertil Koni's allegations. As a matter of company policy, we are not at liberty to comment on the details associated with active legal proceedings.

"We are, however, confident the EFX product does not infringe upon Stertil Koni's U.S. Patent #8,191,865 and plan to fully support all current customers' products, fulfill all pending orders, and continue making the product commercially available for sale."